


Legs

by motorbike_on_the_avenue



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Advertising, F/M, Modern AU, No Angst, advertising inaccuracies probably, and fun, can you guess who it is, mostly just lighthearted, mystery model, workplace friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:21:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 19,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24901471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/motorbike_on_the_avenue/pseuds/motorbike_on_the_avenue
Summary: Brienne and Jaime work for Catelyn Stark's advertising agency. A new campaign has blown up, one featuring a mystery model, that Jaime just can't seem to get out of his mind. He makes it his mission to find out who this model is...but is he looking for what he wants in all the wrong places?
Relationships: Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth
Comments: 298
Kudos: 353





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer; I know literally nothing about advertising or what the job really entails so some of this could be wrong, and all fault is with me. Hope you enjoy!

‘There’s been another accident,’ said Robb Stark as he walked into the offices. ‘That makes four altogether now.’ He threw himself down into a chair, spinning in it for a few seconds before finally facing the rest of the people at the table. ‘Do you think Mum will be impressed?’ He gave them a shit eating grin, like the idea of his mother’s latest advertising campaign causing road traffic accidents was a great laugh. 

Jaime Lannister knew better. The paperwork this would cause their lawyers would take a whole day, not to mention the PR nightmare. The first accident had been great, they’d all had a laugh. Nobody had been seriously injured, and it had called even more attention to their new sign, and their clients had been so happy they’d sent over a crate of champagne, one for everyone on the team. 

Then the second one happened. And the third, which had resulted in one of the drivers having to visit hospital for a couple of stitches. Jaime didn’t even want to know the details of this one. 

‘Do we need to be worried about this?’ asked Petyr Baelish, sorting through papers on his desk. Jaime wasn’t entirely sure why he was worried. Although Petyr liked to keep on top of things, and pretend he kept the whole advertising company running smoothly, Jaime knew it was really Petyr’s underlings that did all the hard work. ‘Four accidents in three weeks could come back to haunt us.’ 

‘Or it could cause tons of media to write about us and blow Bear’s Swimsuits into levels it never thought it could reach,’ Jaime said. ‘You know what they say. There’s no such thing as bad press.’ 

‘Your motto I presume,’ Petyr said, flashing a smirk in Jaime’s direction. Jaime’s hand clenched on the table, but he flashed a fake smile back. This was an old refrain between him and Petyr. There was little love lost between the two of them. 

Jaime didn’t think that being an old friend of the boss qualified you for a job in her company. Petyr didn’t think that someone with Jaime’s reputation, or whose father had his own rival advertising company could be trusted. 

Luckily the 10 other members of the team sitting around the table who were all staring down at their phones ignored the sniping of the two men, and their fight was interrupted by the arrival of two women. One of them, the stern-faced older woman, was Catelyn Stark, the founder of the company. She breezed into the room, taking her position at the head of the table, and silencing the room with just her presence. She wasn’t one to suffer fools gladly, Catelyn. She treated her employees like children sometimes, sending them from rooms and meetings if there was any unnecessary bickering. She always said if they weren’t going to behave like adults, then she wasn’t going to treat them as such. 

The woman who had followed Catelyn into the room was the main reason Jaime had been sent from meetings during his year and a half at the company. Brienne Tarth had a face that begged to be annoyed and her scowl as she ignored Jaime’s jibs and taunts only furthered his desire to get under her skin and make her push back against him. Even if it had cost him a few jobs, seeing Brienne’s pale face flush red was worth it. 

‘Brienne,’ he said now, watching as she slid into her place towards the end of the table. ‘We didn’t know you’d be coming back today. I hope this means things with your father are improving.’ Brienne had spent the last four months on leave. Her father, who lived on a small island a 3-hour flight away from London had become grievously ill. Brienne, as his only child had flown back to be with him. 

‘He is, thank you,’ Brienne said. ‘I’ve left him in the care of his nurses, but he’s back up and walking and talking, and they assure me that the worst has passed.’ Her hand fluttered to her phone on the table in front of her, and Jaime knew she was still worried about her father. That if it hadn’t been for Brienne not wanting to take advantage of Catelyn’s fair nature, she would still be back home on the island of Tarth. 

‘You should have told us you’d be back,’ Jaime said, ignoring the hurt that was pinging around his body. Their frequent fights had given way to a friendship of sorts, and he’d texted her quite a lot over the last four months. Mainly to keep her updated on what was happening in work, obviously, but also to check in on her. Brienne’s best friend seemed to be Catelyn Stark, who was twenty years her senior, or another one of the interns, who was closer in age to Robb Stark than to Brienne’s 27 years. Brienne had mumbled something about knowing Podrick Payne for years, how they’d grown up in the same block of flats, but still. She needed someone who didn’t regard her as another child in her life. 

And Jaime certainly didn’t regard her as that. 

‘It was a little last minute,’ Brienne said, shuffling though some papers that Robb handed to her. Robb was an intern, which basically meant he was one of the assistants to the office for the summer, although Jaime knew it was so Catelyn could keep an eye on him. There had been some issue last year where Robb had decided to run off to Gretna Green and get hitched to a girlfriend his family hadn’t even known existed. The marriage had lasted all of three months, and Jaime was still secretly annoyed he’d had to fork over money for a toaster as a wedding gift. (Which didn’t even make sense, because they were moving back into the Starks massive family home which Jaime knew had every single up to date gadget a place could want. But Brienne had glared at him over their cubicle wall, her clear blue eyes drilling into his head, and in the end he’d given in, handing her a fistful of notes from his wallet.) ‘I would have liked to stay for another week or so, but my father insisted I come home since he was out of the worst.’ She was frowning down at the papers in her hand. 

Brienne’s clothes were a little rumpled, and Jaime guessed she’d come in on a late flight last night, gone straight to bed, and then come into the office first thing this morning. She hated feeling like she was being left out of the loop of things at work, and had kept pestering Jaime for updates on the business. 

Well, pestering was a strong word. Brienne didn’t really pester, she just glared and scowled until Jaime gave in, and she’d stopped responding to his texts that weren’t about the business so he’d had no choice but to give in to her. Again. 

‘Now that’s all been settled, can we get back to the meeting?’ Catelyn asked. She smiled gently at Brienne to show her the rebuke wasn’t for her, and Jaime slumped lower in his seat. He’d thought taking the job here, away from his father’s company would solve the issue of him feeling like a naughty schoolboy, always in the headmaster’s office. 

It hadn’t. With Catelyn it was somehow a little worse than it had been under his father’s rule. With Tywin, Jaime could at least get away with an angry outburst, and say things he didn’t mean. Here, he had to watch himself constantly. One wrong move, and he’d be out of the offices before he could even say ‘advertising executive.’ He knew he’d only got the job because of the awards he’d won over the years. And because Catelyn wanted to have one up on his father, but he liked to think it had more to do with how good he was at his job. ‘Adam, Pia, update me on the latest with Red Keep.’ As the other team members told Catelyn all about the new butter campaign they were working on, Jaime found his mind wandering. The meeting room was big and airy, made of glass walls, and up on the 17th floor of the building. There was a specular view of London if you stood close enough to the back wall. Not London with the Eye, and the Shard, and all the famous building, they weren’t that deep into the city, but there was a great view of a bingo hall. At night when it was all lit up, it was quite something. 

At 9.30am though the view was of a perfectly blue sky. Not a cloud to be seen. Everyone in the office was in a great mood, the majority of them having some new campaign to get behind and really get into. Jaime himself was working on four pitches at the moment, hoping that Catelyn would toss at least one of them his way. And if he happened to know that someone else in the room had spent the last few weeks working on the same pitches, well that was just a little healthy competition. It had nothing to do with Jaime realizing that Catelyn tended to set up the two employees with the best pitches together, so both their ideas could feature. 

Nothing at all. 

Jaime noticed he wasn’t the only one who was letting the buzz of conversation pass him by. The team had moved onto discussing the merits and demerits of using real cats for the King Tommen’s Cat Food shoot later in the week, but Brienne wasn’t paying any attention. She was still looking though the sheaf of papers Robb had handed her. A notebook was next to her, and she was making scribbles in it as she read. 

‘Well that all sounds good,’ Catelyn said, picking up her phone and scrolling through her messages, a clear sign the meeting was over. She liked to do these meetings once a week, just so she could be kept updated of where everyone was in the company. Pitches would be made to her in her own office, and jobs assigned there too. 

‘There’s been another accident,’ Robb shot out, almost lunging across the table in his haste to tell his mother his news. ‘Theon text me, and he said he saw it happen. Two cars.’ He mimed his hands crashing into each other. ‘He said he didn’t think anyone ended up going to the hospital this time, but he wasn’t standing near enough to hear the men talking.’ 

‘And what was Theon doing near the sign?’ Catelyn asked. Adam Marbrand caught Jaime’s eye and they both hastily looked down at their own papers. Theon was Robb’s best friend, but it was very easy to see what his favourite pastime was. The guy always had a lazy smile on his face, and stunk of the drugs he was so fond of doing. 

‘There’s a park near there,’ Robb muttered, ‘and he likes looking at it.’ The blush on his face almost rivaled the colour of his hair, and Jaime stifled his laughter behind a cough. Robb coming to the office had really brightened his days recently. 

‘Wait, what sign is this?’ Brienne asked. Jaime should have known better. She might look like she was paying no attention, but if asked she’d probably be able to recite the meeting word for word. She flipped through the couple of papers she hadn’t been able to read yet. ‘We didn’t have any signs in the works when I left, just full-page adverts, TV, radio. And what’s this about an accident?’ 

‘It’s nothing,’ Catelyn said quickly. ‘One of our campaigns got a lot of attention and the company who’d hired us decided they did have a bigger budget after all, for a few extra bits and pieces.’ Robb slunk back into his chair, relief on his face. 

‘What one?’ Brienne asked. ‘Maiden Pools? Keeper’s safes? Kissed by Fire Rum?’ 

‘Someone will talk you through everything later,’ Catelyn Stark said, at the same time the rest of the team said ‘Bear’s Swimsuits.’ 

Brienne slowly lowered her papers to the table, then met everyone’s eye. Jaime felt as though she was looking for something, but everyone else seemed just as lost as he did. He knew that Bear’s had been one of the last jobs Brienne had worked on before she’d left. 

‘It’s got a sign?’ she asked, her voice low and even. Jaime knew this was usually when Brienne was at her most dangerous – when she was pretending not to be. ‘It got a lot of attention?’ 

‘A ton of attention,’ Robb Stark bust out with. ‘Can you blame it? There’s even talk about it winning awards, although some don’t think it will just because all the feminists are talking about how it doesn’t deserve it because it subjects women to being just about their body but how else are we supposed to sell swimsuits? Bear’s are really happy with it though. They want to put up more signs, although maybe ones that aren’t so easily seen from a road.’ 

‘Catelyn, could I speak with you in your office for a moment?’ Brienne said, standing up and pushing back her chair. 

‘Now really isn’t a good time...but oh, well, I suppose.’ Catelyn rose herself, slipping her phone into her pocket. ‘Give me five minutes.’ She left the room then, officially calling the meeting ended. 

‘What’s all this about?’ Jaime asked, as he sidled up next to Brienne. ‘Bear’s was one of yours, wasn’t it?’ He knew it had been. He’d fought her for weeks to get the job, and had only been slightly disappointed that he wouldn’t get to spend the few weeks auditioning swimsuit models and scouting beaches. 

The exhilaration on her face had made those things worth missing out on. 

‘You never told me it had got so big,’ she said turning to him. 

It was like a punch in the gut. Having those blue eyes turn on him after four months of nothing. Jaime had been telling himself he hadn’t missed her, that he was just a friend concerned for her health and wellbeing but all his protests faded to dust as she looked at him. 

‘It slipped my mind,’ he said, not meeting her gaze. There was a very good reason why he hadn’t told her about the campaign getting so much bigger – two in fact – but he wasn’t going to tell her about it now either. ‘I’m sure Catelyn will bring you up to speed.’ 

‘Let me get this straight,’ Brienne said. ‘You text me eleven times about your new neighbour and his habit of catching you on your way home and forcing you into a conversation, but this, this, you left out?’ 

‘What can I say?’ He flashed an easy grin at her, that turned into something soft at the incredulous look on her face. ‘It’s good to have you back, Brienne.’ For a moment it looked as though she was going to walk away without a word. 

But then her too big for her face lips spread into a smile, and she said ‘it’s good to be back, too.’


	2. Chapter 2

‘What are you doing?’ Jaime reacted to Adam’s question by rolling his chair forward so fast he smacked his knee into the leg of his desk. That was going to bruise. 

‘Nothing,’ he said, clicking around a little on his computer screen. ‘Just wanted to run some ideas past Catelyn and wanted to check if she was free.’ 

Adam gave a laugh, then settled himself on the edge of Jaime’s desk. 

‘Right, and when you saw she was still inside with Brienne, you just needed to watch her for ten minutes to see if she’d be free any time soon?’ Adam asked. He’d picked up one of the screwed-up pieces of paper that littered Jaime’s desk and was unfolding it. 

‘And you were obviously watching me, so really who’s the creepy one here?’ Jaime asked. He snatched the paper from Adam’s hand, creasing it back into its ball. He always started his ideas by writing them down on paper, and sketching a few things out. Once the paper was full, he’d rip the page out and scrunch it. It was part of his process, and he didn’t like people seeing his earlier, crappier ideas. 

They also made great objects to throw at certain other people who happened to sit on the other side of Jaime’s cubicle. Well, they had. Until he’d thrown one and accidently knocked over a smoothie, all other Brienne’s brand-new storyboard that she’d spent the better part of a morning on. He hadn’t thrown one since then. 

‘Still you,’ said Adam. ‘But what would you expect for a guy with...hey, where’d it go?’ He was looking around Jaime’s desk, searching for something. 

‘Do you actually want something, Adam, or can I get back to work?’ Jaime asked. He was praying that Adam would give up and go away. 

But Jaime rarely got his prayers answered. 

‘Did you throw it out? Why? You’ve kept it here for the past few months, why would you throw it out...ah.’ Adam’s tone turned to something that Jaime didn’t like as a shadow fell across Jaime’s desk and the two men. Brienne had gone as soon as she’d appeared, on her way to who knew where. She’d been in Catelyn’s office for the past hour and a half, and whatever they’d been talking about had seemed intense. From the glimpses Jaime had gotten. ‘I see.’ 

To save his dignity, Jaime’s best bet was probably to keep quiet. But he’d never been very good at that. 

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ he said, pretending to look at a file on his computer. Somehow, in all his clicking he seemed to have lost all the numbers that had been arranged on the left-hand side of his document. Shit. He needed those. 

‘I’m talking about the framed photo we all clubbed together and got you of the Bear’s Swimsuit model. I’m talking about the fact that you’ve kept it here on your desk for the past four months. And I’m talking about the fact that it’s mysteriously disappeared now that a certain someone has reappeared.’ 

‘I was never a fan of the photo,’ Jaime said. ‘I just kept it up there so I wouldn’t hurt your feelings.’ He gave a shrug. ‘I noticed it for the first time today after we’d talked about it in the meeting and realised I didn’t need it on my desk.’ One of Jaime’s finer talents was being able to keep a calm collected face even as he lied through his teeth. He didn’t do it often, because he hated lying, but sometimes there were exceptional circumstances. 

This was one. 

‘Jaime, you can force as many words through your lips as you like, we all saw you choke on your drink the first time you saw that photo,’ Adam said. He had a grin on his face, not unlike the one Robb Stark had worn this morning when talking about the fourth accident Bear’s newest campaign had caused. 

The thing was, it was a great campaign. 

Brienne, who’d led the team for Bear’s had floated the company a simple idea; a beautiful background. One of their best-selling suits. And a beautiful body to put it in. 

She’d got what she wanted, or at least a version of it. The background was a beach with (heavily filtered) sand and sea, whites and blues so clear they made the viewer wish for a holiday. The best-selling suit was a simple black, cut flattering on the thigh, the only decoration a small diamante square at the end of the plunging neckline. 

And she’d got the beautiful body to put it in. The model in the photo had her head tipped back, as she leant backwards on a pretty brick wall, so nobody could see her face. But as Adam had said ‘who needs to see her face when you can see her body?’ (Not in the hearing of any women of course. He wasn’t that stupid.) Her neck was stretched back, thrusting her small (but it worked) chest out to the camera, her body was long and fluid, and her legs. Her legs took up half of the photo, and it might be true that Jaime had choked when he’d first seen them, but from what he’d read online so had half the world’s population. They were pale, and muscled and everyone was convinced it had taken hours of photoshop and editing to make a poster like this. 

The thing was, Jaime knew they weren’t. Brienne didn’t believe in heavily edited photos for her campaigns. It was what she sold to the companies she pitched; authentic. Real. She didn’t mind a little colour mixing, of course, but she was very vocal about using photoshop to give women unreal expectations about their bodies. 

Jaime liked to tell himself that that was why he’d choked. He knew Brienne would never sign off on something like that, and had been offended on her behalf. Then Catelyn had released a statement saying that minimal editing had been used in the photo (it had been a cold day, but goosepimples hadn’t been allowed to make the final cut.) 

The comment was final; the body was real. 

That had sent the media into a storm of wondering who it could possibly be. Supermodels were floated around, but most people were sensible enough to know those were false. Catelyn’s Stark agency was well known, but it wasn’t the type that called supermodels for swimwear. They had a few big names to their books, however, and Jaime had seen those floating around as well. 

‘And anyway,’ Adam said, picking up another crumpled piece of paper and smoothing it out on his legs, ‘Brienne’s not going to care if you have a photo of Daenerys Targaryen’s legs on your desk. Just tell her you liked the campaign, and it reminded you of her.’ 

Jaime gave his friend a look. Adam was great at picking up women whenever they went on a night out, but anything other than a few cheesy pick-up lines and he was lost. His longest relationship had lasted all of a month. 

Not that Jaime could talk. He’d been with his longest girlfriend for four months, and that was more her doing than his. It had finally come to an end when he’d found the secret stash of items she’d moved into his flat. Then he’d forced himself to have the conversation with her, about how his feeling weren’t that deep. 

In truth, he’d never felt that deep about anyone. Girl’s attracted his interest for one reason or another, but he’d soon find himself distracted by more pressing matters like his work or his family and things quickly fizzled out. Jaime couldn’t really say he’d ever been heartbroken by the end of a relationship. Jaime couldn't really say he’d ever really had a relationship. 

‘Somehow I can’t see that going down well with Brienne,’ Jaime murmured. It was no good. He’d have to get Pod or Robb to look at his computer, and see if they could work out what he’d done and how to get the numbers back. He’d see if Pod was free. Robb tended to laugh at him, and Jaime didn’t like the ‘old man’ nickname he’d earned around the office because he didn’t quite get on with technology. Catelyn was older than him, and Adam was only a few years younger but no one would call them old. 

Not to their faces anyway. 

‘What won’t go down well with me?’ said a voice, as another shadow fell across Jaime’s desk. He swiveled in his chair so fast, he was in danger of cracking his knee again. Brienne was back behind him. She seemed a little calmer than she had earlier. ‘What have you done?’ She was looking at his computer behind him, and Jaime edged to the side so she could get a better look. 

‘I’ll leave you two alone,’ Adam said, jumping down and slinking away. He gave Jaime a quick wink as he passed, and Jaime shook his shaggy blond hair. 

‘What was that all about?’ Brienne asked. She slotted herself into the space where Adam had just left and Jaime felt another hit of the feeling from earlier when she’d looked at him, as her scent washed over him. Brienne always smelled fresh and clean, like a really good washing liquid or the ocean. She started clicking at his computer, but Jaime had a feeling that she actually knew what she was doing. Two months before she’d left, she’d told Jaime she was putting a blanket ban on helping him out if he messed something up again, but it was good to see she’d forgotten her statement. 

‘He was just ragging on me for not telling you about the campaign as well,’ Jaime said smoothly. ‘He said I should try thinking about what I’d be like if it was me who’d had something I’d done go viral.’ 

‘It went viral?’ Brienne turned to look at him. Her white blonde hair was stuck to her forehead. She’d had it cut shorter while she’d been away, and Jaime liked the new style. 

‘They said it was the modern version of the Wonderbra advert, and the accidents are just proving that.’ He placed a hand on her shoulder, and gave it a pat. Brienne could sometimes be funny about touching, and he knew it usually made her uncomfortable, so he only did it sparingly. But it had been four months. He needed to make sure that she really was back. ‘I don’t see what the problem is; this is what we dream of. Even I’m only a little bitter about how well it’s going for you.’ He smiled to show he was joking, and was relieved to see a shadow of a smile on her face too. 

‘I am glad it’s gone so big; Catelyn says the company are so happy they’ve locked us down for a two-year contact. And that we’re getting more business every day.’ She gave a small sigh, then stepped back. ‘There. I think I’ve undone what you did. Why were you messing around with it anyway?’ 

‘I hit the wrong button,’ Jaime said, checking for himself. She had fixed it. ‘I am glad you’re back.’ 

‘You’ve said,’ Brienne replied, but there was warmth in it. She turned to leave. ‘You know if you want to have a photo of Daenerys Targaryen’s legs framed on your desk you shouldn’t worry what I think about it.’ 

Jaime never blushed but he was suddenly warm about the cheeks. He’d placed the photo in the bottom drawer of his desk, and Brienne couldn’t have seen him do it. All the desks had cubicle walls around them, so the team wouldn’t be disturbed as they worked. 

‘I wasn’t aware that you knew about that,’ he said, trying to keep his cool. Brienne had left the office before the photo had been officially released, and he’d never told her about his reaction to it. 

‘Pod text me, saying the team had gone in on a joke photo for you,’ she said. ‘He wondered if they’d gone a little far, but I told him since I was sure he had very little to do with it he had nothing to worry about.’ 

‘I just like the scenery,’ he tried, even though he knew it was no use. Brienne didn’t sound upset about the picture like he’d thought she would be. 

‘I’ll believe you,’ Brienne said. She left a pause before she spoke again, and Jaime couldn’t read her expression in the reflection of his computer screen. ‘And everyone knows it’s Daenerys Targaryen in the photo?’ she asked. ‘Catelyn said the media didn’t know who the model was.’ 

‘Well, the normal public and the media don’t know,’ Jaime said, and he turned to face her, hoping his face had gone back to a normal colour. While the fierce blushes Brienne suffered from had an endearing quality to them, he imagined his wouldn’t. ‘Don’t tell anyone, but I have friends in high places. I found the work sheet from the day of the photo shoot and saw she was the model on call. I was shocked at first,’ he said, remembering back to that day. Daenerys was a looker that was true, but she wasn’t as tall as the model in the picture. 

But Jaime knew all too well how good posture, a flattering cut and the right lighting could add a couple of inches to anyone. He never would have guessed the slim, silver haired Daenerys was hiding legs like that under her floaty dresses. ‘Good call Tarth.’ He knew she wouldn’t have had the final say on the model used, but she would have had some form of input. 

‘Thank you,’ she said, and he was pleased to see a little bit of colour come back to her cheeks. He hadn’t really noticed how pale she’d been since she’d come back. 

‘So, lunch?’ he asked. He wasn’t quite crossing his fingers under his legs, but he did think about it. ‘I can catch you up on everything.’ 

‘I think I’m all good with office gossip,’ she said. ‘You sent me seven messages about Adam sleeping with the newest copier assistant. But lunch would be nice. Thank you.’ She did leave then, and it only took a second for Adam to slither back into her place. 

‘You know considering you were oh so desperate to speak to Catelyn she’s been free for ten minutes now and you haven’t made a move.’ Adam gave a laugh. ‘But that’s your MO, isn’t it, Lannister?’ He gave Jaime another wink before finally leaving him alone.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really small filler chapter today, so I'll post the next chapter in a few days instead of making you wait a week for it!

Jaime hadn’t meant for his office crush to be so...obvious. The truth was it had been fun at first to tease Brienne. She was very easy to wind up, but slow to react; not because she didn’t understand but because she was above such things like insults. Jaime felt some thrill of pleasure when he got a rise out of her, when he managed to crack her demeanour. He supposed, if you looked too closely at it, it was a classic case of a boy pulling a girls pigtails to get her attention, but he liked to think he was above such things; so he didn’t look too deep into it. 

When he came to the company it was shrouded by a black cloak of anger. A few months earlier, Jaime had been arrested after beating a guy half to death. Only his father’s name and lawyers had helped him escape a prison sentence. Nobody asked him about it, just refused to meet his eye if they happened to pass him and whispered behind his back. Even here, it had taken a while for the team to warm up to him. Adam had been first, seeking Jaime’s opinion for a pitch he was working on that was similar to one Jaime had done a few years ago. They’d gone out for drinks after Adam had won the pitch, and when Jaime had casually brought his past up, Adam had shrugged and said everyone had secrets. 

After that people had slowly trickled into their circle, mainly because Adam was friends with everyone and the group was so small it didn’t really work for one of them to be ignored. 

And then one day, Brienne had sat down next to Jaime at the pub after work, and started a conversation. It was stilted and suffered from several long pauses, but it had meant a lot that she was trying to be civil. He’d asked her about it a few weeks later, the first time that he’d ruined something on his computer and she’d offered to take a look. 

‘I looked it up,’ she’d said, her focus still more on the computer than on him. ‘What happened. Why you did what you did. There was an article about it.’ Jaime knew there would be. His father had a reputation that only old business men cared about, and his twin sister was a dazzling socialite who always featured on the arm of the newest up and comer and who’s personal life was splashed across the front pages. Jaime himself wasn’t in the spotlight, but his last name required that some trashy tabloid would write about his arrest. ‘They wrote what that guy said to you. What he said he would do to your sister.’ The office, which was a good large room had felt cramped and crowded. Jaime had felt like every eye was upon their conversation. ‘I don’t blame you for what you did. If someone had said those things to me about someone I loved, I would have done the same.’ Jaime doubted that, but it had made him feel a little better. Him and his twin sister were close, in the way that all twins were, but they were both adults with their own life. They didn’t talk as much as they should, but Jaime had always felt a fierce protectiveness over her. Cersei liked to make out that she was tough, but she had a habit of getting herself into shitty situations and then needing help to get out of them. 

When her date for the evening at one of their father’s parties had spent ten minutes telling Jaime just what he was planning to do to Cersei that evening, Jaime had snapped. His temper had already been close to the surface after years of living under his father’s rule, and the guy had been the last straw. 

‘You could have just asked me,’ Jaime had said to Brienne that day. She’d nodded seriously, and promised him that if she ever had any doubts about him again, she would just come out and ask. 

That was probably when the first stirrings had started, if he looked back on it. There, and the first time he saw her smile, after she beat some drunken ass playing darts in the pub, who was boasting loudly that nobody could beat him, and certainly not a woman. 

The guy had almost vomited when Brienne had won. 

Ever since then the teasing had turned to a – what Jaime hoped – was a flirty banter, and a friendship. They talked about their ideas, unless they were going for the same pitch, and although Brienne didn’t believe in bad mouthing anyone on their team, she’d listen to Jaime if he needed to vent. They got lunch together at least once a week and texted each other as they watched the latest TV drama at the same time. After Catelyn, Jaime had been the first person that Brienne had told she was going back to see her father. 

That was probably when everyone around the office had started suspecting something. Or at least the jokes and knowing looks hadn’t started until Brienne had been nowhere near to hear them. Jaime supposed he was grateful for that. At the mention of anyone having a crush on her, she clammed up and fought every word that was said, as Pia found out when she insisted one of the delivery guys fancied Brienne. Which was part of the reason Jaime had never said anything. He wasn’t shy about making a move on a girl if he liked her, and he’d spent more nights than he’d care to count adding up the pros and cons of asking Brienne out. He liked her, that was true. He would like to see if things could go further between them. But he didn’t want to make things awkward between them, plus there was work to consider, and his track record. He liked her now, and while his feelings for her were more than his usual passing interest, he still wasn’t sure if it was worth the risk of losing Brienne if things went wrong. There was the added fact that she wouldn’t believe him if he told her. He knew Brienne had had a boyfriend while she was in university, but that they’d broken up once he got a job in Manchester and she got the job here. He obviously hadn’t been worth long distance. 

Adam was the one who’d started the jokes, making a passing comment about how Brienne had been passed over for a pair of legs. The whole office had heard and others had started to jump in with little comments of their own. Robb had tried to start a conversation about what a good couple Brienne and Jaime would make, but he’d shut that down pretty quick. He’d noticed Pod lurking around in the background a few times, but he hadn’t really thought about it. He hoped Pod hadn’t been texting Brienne about the office talking about her when she wasn’t even here. Brienne would hate that. 

Jaime sat at his office desk, watching as Brienne went back to her computer to catch up on four month of work. Slowly, he slid his bottom drawer open, and looked at the photograph he'd placed face up just an hour ago. It didn't have quite the same effect on him now as when he'd first seen it, but it did still make him smile. It did remind him of Brienne and her brain, and it was nice gift from his friends at work. 

Maybe it wasn't such a big thing if he left it displayed on his desk.


	4. Chapter 4

The invitation arrived a few weeks later. Jaime was just getting used to having Brienne back in his day to day life, although he admitted he missed texting her. She seemed to have a knack for knowing whenever Jaime was going to offload about his tedious day, and for slipping away with an excuse. Their regular lunches had resumed, and Jaime had even managed to persuade her to spend an evening round at his house watching TV and eating take away. She’d told him a little more about the months she’d spent with her dad and how hard it had been to see him so ill. 

‘They are loving the new business this is bringing to them, aren’t they?’ Pia said as she approached Jaime. He was standing under the noticeboard in the office, staring up the Bear’s Swimsuit invite. They’d gone with a black card, the words in flowing silver to match the swimsuit in the photo. 

Jaime shrugged. 

‘It’s the biggest boom they’ve had since they opened. Their sales have tripled, and that swimsuit has sold out four times already in the months since they launched the campaign,’ he said. It wasn’t usual for them to keep up to date with sales for jobs they’d done, apart from the occasional ‘thank you’ bottle of champagne from brands they’d taken on. But Bear’s sales were kind of hard to miss. They were everywhere, running their advert in every national print media they could. 

The party they were throwing next week was in part a pat on the back for them, and to officially relaunch the swimsuit in the advert with its new name; Legs. That was the nickname that had been given to the model in the photo, and even Jaime had to admit naming the swimsuit after her was a genius idea. 

A small group of people were getting riled up about the name change and how much attention everyone was paying to the advert, but most people seemed to think it was generally a bit of fun, and that if you’ve got it, flaunt it. The media were coming up with new guesses every day, but Bear’s were adamant they would not be releasing her name to the press. Jaime thought this party would be the perfect place to reveal her name. He was going to make sure that Daenerys knew about the party when she came to the offices later to talk about the new job they’d hired her for; Queen Dragon Perfume. Jaime had seen the plans that Catelyn had drawn up; they involved a giant mechanical dragon that Daenerys would be expected to sit upon and pretend to fly. Dany wasn’t exactly what Jaime would call a fierce warrior, but the owner of the perfume had seen her photo and demanded that they ask Dany to take the job. 

Jaime knew there was no point. As much as Jorah was probably hoping that Dany would fall madly in love with him at first sight like he had her, Dany had been married for four years. Her husband, Khal, was an American linebacker who played for the Dorthaki Horselords. He was a scary looking human, a giant of a man with a set of abs that made Jaime jealous every time he saw them. He had long wavy black hair, and a serious face that usually split into a grin whenever someone started talking to him. It might actually be fun to see him and Jorah in the same room together, but Jaime knew it would never happen. Khal didn’t come with his wife to shoots. 

‘Brienne pulled a blinder,’ Pia said. ‘I doubt even she knew how well this was going to blow up.’ 

Jaime made a noise of agreement. This advert should be the star of her career, the one she got known for. She should be glowing whenever anyone mentioned it, and have the photo on her desk. 

Instead she clammed up whenever anyone spoke about it within her earshot. She pursed her lips a little and changed the subject, and Jaime had even seen her avert her eyes whenever the photo came up. She deliberately ignored it whenever she came to Jaime’s desk and whenever someone mentioned it in their meetings her face became deliberately blank. Even Catelyn seemed to be adhering to Brienne’s rules. Their boss only mentioned it when she had to, to update everyone on how the advert was progressing. They’d had previous campaigns do well before and Catelyn had blown the posters up big and hung them in her office, boasted about them whenever someone visited, and praised the person behind the pitch. The lack of the Legs poster in her office had not gone unnoticed. ‘It’s a good job Brienne was the one who came up with the idea,’ Pia continued. ‘I don’t think the office would have survived your big head if it had been your pitch that had blown up,’ she said. Jaime grinned. Being humble wasn’t really a strong suit of his, that was true. He liked to celebrate his achievements. Loudly and publicly. As someone who had grown up believing he would never amount to anything other than his good looks, when he did do a good job it was hard not to want to share it with the world. 

‘Even so,’ Jaime said, wanting to share his thoughts with someone else inside the office, ‘you don’t think it’s a little weird that she doesn’t even seem a bit pleased about all this?’ 

Pia shrugged. ‘That’s just Brienne, isn’t it? She’s not one for shouting about her feelings or her accomplishments. She’d rather just know she’d done her job and done it well.’ Jaime had to give her that. Brienne had never been one for shouting about her feelings and she wasn’t very good at taking praise. Even before, when someone complimented her, she’d give an awkward grin and flush, before changing the subject or trying to push the words away. ‘So, are you bringing a date to the party?’ Pia asked. 

Jaime tensed. Although his crush on Brienne was well known, Pia’s crush on him was even more obvious. Adam had confided in Jaime that Pia had started wearing short skirts and blouses with three buttons open more once Jaime had started working for Catelyn. Pia always made sure to stand next to Jaime whenever she could get away with it, and tossed her hair around while they were talking. 

In truth, it made Jaime uncomfortable. He wasn’t great at knowing how to act around women who liked him, and he didn’t want something to start with Pia. He didn’t want to give her false hope, but he also didn’t want to push her away. It was a tricky balancing act, and he was never sure which side he was landing on. His tactic so far was to avoid Pia around the office as much as possible. 

‘I don’t know if we get a plus one,’ he answered, for lack of anything better to say. He turned, looking past Pia to find someone he could call out to, someone he could pretend he needed to talk to. 

Everyone else was engaged in serious looking conversations with someone else, and he didn’t want to interrupt their work for no reason. Adam was usually pretty good at sussing out when Jaime needed a hand and could be counted upon to come rescue him, but Jaime couldn’t see his friend’s head anywhere. 

Instead, what saved him, was the model they’d just been talking about entering the office. Dany walked through double doors with her usual smile on her face, her pale silvery hair long and flowing down her back, one of her dogs under her arm. She was never seen without one of her furry friends. Jaime knew each dog had their own Instagram account and added to Dany’s already rather large income with advertising deals of their own. 

‘Dany,’ he called out, beckoning her over. He ignored the look of disappoint that crossed Pia’s face, too overcome with relief to feel bad about it. 

‘Jaime, Pia, how goes it?’ Dany asked. She smiled at them, and Jaime wondered why the photographer for the Bear’s Swimsuit had decided to cut her face out of the photo. Dany had a lovely face, with her dark purple eyes, and delicate features. Her face was what booked her the modelling jobs in the first place, and nobody had seen this level of interest in the model coming. 

‘We were just talking about the Bear’s swimsuit ad,’ Jaime told Dany, with a knowing smirk. He waited for her to blush or smile or give them a coy look, but she didn’t react at all. She was a good actress too, it seemed. 

‘They’re throwing a party, next Saturday,’ Pia said. ‘No doubt you’ll be there.’ She flung Dany a dark look, then slinked back to her desk, throwing Jaime one last look over her shoulder as she went. 

Jaime felt his breathing return to normal. 

‘What was that all about?’ Dany asked, struggling slightly with the furry creature in her arms. All her dogs were tiny, and she’d given them weird sounding names that Jaime could never remember. 

‘Oh, Pia’s probably just a little jealous,’ Jaime said, suddenly remembering the photo he had on his desk. Of course. Dany had the body Jaime had not so secretly been lusting after. He wouldn’t actually try anything with Dany, but still. That had to make Pia a little annoyed. 

‘Oh, because she likes you?’ Dany asked. ‘Do you want me to amuse myself for a little while until Catelyn is ready? We can chat later. I wouldn’t want to ruin your chances.’ 

‘No, no,’ Jaime said, throwing his hands out as if to grab at Dany and keep her in place. ‘I am more than happy to talk to you right now.’ Catelyn was still in her office with the interns, and Pia kept looking at Jamie and Dany by the noticeboard. Jaime knew as soon as Dany left, Pia would be back over like a shot. ‘So, I assume you will be at the party?’ He gestured to the invite, and Dany’s eyes roved over it. 

‘I haven’t been invited,’ she said. ‘Can’t say I blame them. Why would they invite me?’ So, she was playing it like this, was she? Jaime didn’t blame her. There had probably been some contact sent to her after the ad blew up, letting her know if she revealed it was her to anyone, they’d sue her for a lot of money. 

And Dany was just a well-known model. She wasn’t in the big leagues, not by a long shot, although Jaime didn’t doubt it would take her long to get there. Her husband wasn’t on a great team, the Horselords being known more for their rough players than their winning. She wasn’t rolling in money. 

‘It’s alright,’ he said lowering his voice. ‘I know your big secret.’ Dany gazed up at him with big eyes, before laughing. 

‘Well, I can’t say I hid it very well,’ she said. ‘And it’s not like it’s a secret. People will have to know at some point.’ Then she frowned. ‘Although, I still fail to see what this has to do with their party.’ She pointed at the invite. ‘I almost ruined their photoshoot, why would they want me there?’ 

‘Whatever you did on the day of the shoot, I think they’ve more than forgiven you for it,’ Jaime said. Dany split her time the UK and the US. Maybe she hadn’t heard how big the ad had gotten. That her poster had now caused five road traffic accidents as drivers got distracted by her legs. 

Jaime stole a glance as Dany’s lower half. Even though her legs were hidden behind a long white skirt, he was still having trouble connecting them with the long ones from the photo. 

Poses. Lights. Angle, he reminded himself. You could do great things with those. 

‘I don’t think Ramsay Bolton will ever speak to me again,’ Dany said now. They could see the interns standing inside Catelyn’s office, getting ready to take their leave and Jaime followed her as she made her way towards the glass walls. ‘Not that I’m complaining about that.’ Ramsay Bolton was an up and coming photographer, but he was also one of the biggest dickheads Jaime had ever met, and he had Tywin Lannister for a father. Bolton’s reputation on photoshoots proceeded him, and it was only because of his skills with a camera that he still was given jobs. Jaime had heard horror stories about Bolton threatening his models with bodily harm if they didn’t fold themselves into the poses he wanted, and once, he’d apparently thrown a lightening guy across the room after he hadn’t been able to turn the spotlight on quick enough. 

‘Why?’ Jaime asked, curious now. ‘What did you do?’ This bit of gossip had been kept from him. If something had gone down, it might make sense as to why Brienne was so closed off about this shoot. Jaime had known that fireworks must have flown having Brienne and Bolton in the same location together. Brienne wasn’t one to let anyone get away with injustice in front of her. Maybe there had been an altercation. Brienne wouldn’t want anyone hearing about that, even if she did know that Jaime would feel nothing but admiration for her. 

‘It wasn’t so much as something I did, so much as something I am,’ Dany said. They’d reached Catelyn’s door now, where a steady stream of interns were filing out. They had fifteen this year. Jaime had learned the names of four of them. 

Dany moved her dog to the side, to carry him under one arm, and Jaime stared at the small belly poking through her smart blouse. 

‘You’re pregnant,’ he said, stupidly. ‘That wasn’t in the photo.’ 

So that was why. Suddenly, it all made sense. Brienne, for all her anti-editing spiel had allowed a photo to be retouched, to hide a baby bump. And if they could retouch that, they could also elongate the legs. Brienne was only the advertising agent; she didn’t have a final say in the editing process. That would have been left up to the company. And they were obviously a bunch of liars. 

Jaime felt an overwhelming sense of disappointment. The body wasn’t real, just some fakery, done with photoshop. 

‘Well it would be hard for my bump to be in the photo, since I'm not in it,’ Dany said. Robb had stayed behind for a second to talk to his mother, and from his face Jaime judged they didn’t want to be interrupted. Robb’s face was bright red, and Catelyn looked like she was on some kind of rant. 

‘What do you mean you’re not in the photo?’ Jaime said. ‘You’re Legs aren’t you? I looked at the call sheet; you were the only model booked that day.’ 

‘I was the only model booked,’ Dany said, like it should be obvious. ‘But once I came out in the swimsuit, there was no hiding my belly. I thought it would be alright, but you know what Ramsay is like. Once he saw that, he went mental. And Brienne, she’s nice enough but she apparently has this whole unedited not photoshopped stance. She was very apologetic as she told me, but she said it’s what she sold the company on in the first place, real woman wearing their clothes, or something. She said she was fine with my bump showing, but Ramsay wasn’t, and it wasn’t how I’d wanted to announce little Drogo to the world.’ She stroked her belly. ‘Can’t say I was too sad about missing out on the job. I still got paid for my travel, and had a free lunch.’ She frowned a little. ‘Ramsay refused to shoot me in my swimwear. I know there was a big discussion on what to do next, because they couldn’t get everyone together again for at least three weeks, and that Brienne and Catelyn made several phone calls. But in the end, I think they went with somebody who had already been at the photoshoot. One of the runners, maybe?’ She shrugged. ‘It seems to have worked out for everyone anyway. I’ve seen that photo everywhere, and let me tell you, I am glad it’s not me. That’s a lot of attention for one person to handle.’ 

Jaime agreed with her, then made small talk for several more minutes before Robb Stark came hurrying out of his mother’s office with his head down, and Catelyn beckoned for Dany to come in. 

As soon as she left him, Jaime hurried to his computer, clicking on the company diary. It was a giant workbook full of all the dates for meetings and shoots, each stating who needed to be where and at what time. Each of the shoots they went on had a separate page, listing everybody who had been there on the day, in case any queries should crop up afterwards. 

He was going to find that model.


	5. Chapter 5

‘I’m assuming you’re not about to finally show me that you can do a somersault and twist off a diving board?’ Jaime asked as he approached Brienne. Bear’s party was in full swing down below them. Unbeknown to everyone, Bear’s had rented a swimming pool for their party, which stood glittering below the staircase Jaime and Brienne now stood on. 

Jaime had arrived an hour ago, selecting a glass of champagne from the waiters and chuckling to himself at the sheer genius of this idea. Since nobody had known about the pool party, everyone had arrived in their best black tie - which meant if you wanted to go in the pool, you needed to borrow one of the swimsuits that Bear’s were so helpfully providing. Jaime himself hadn’t opted for a pair of trunks just yet, although plenty of people had. Women with their hair in fancy chignons and full faces of make-up were splashing each other in the blue waters and men who’d been wandering around wearing dark suits just half an hour ago were divebombing into the pool. It was refreshing to see so many from the advertising world having a laugh at one of these events. Usually they were a stuffy affair, as everyone tried to one up each other, talking about their latest campaigns or the awards they’d won. 

Brienne had only just arrived. Jaime had seen her enter, and the look of shock on her face. The entrance was on the second floor, so the pool was the first thing you saw when you entered the room, spread out below you, the water blue-washing the white tiled bottom floor. There was a diving board at one end of the room, and a queue of people lining up for it. Jaime felt a little like he was back at a child’s birthday party with the sense of excitement in the room, although he wasn’t sure why. He’d never been to something as common as a pool party at his elite boarding school. 

‘You would be right,’ Brienne answered, turning her scowl on him. She’d declined her drink from a passing waiter, and Jaime didn’t blame her. Although there were lifeguards standing around, Jaime felt they’d make better models than life savers. ‘And you know that’s not the proper name for it.’ 

Jaime shrugged. He’d been trying to get Brienne to prove she could still dive since he’d come across an article about a 17-year-old Brienne Tarth winning a National Diving competition for her school. (He wasn’t stalking her, she’d just been such a closed book when they’d first met, and he had to find out about her somehow. And it was only on page 4 of Google.) ‘Is that because you know you can’t do it?’ 

‘Trying to bait me hasn’t worked before, and it won’t now,’ she said, in her calm manner. He’d known it wouldn’t work, but he did have to try. Just in case. ‘Is Catelyn here?’ 

‘She is,’ Jaime said. ‘Although she’s in the bar area.’ A small closed off section away from the pool, where the glass doors cut out all noise from the chaos below. Jaime didn’t blame Catelyn for choosing to spend her night there. ‘She said you’d want to see her when you arrived, but she also told me if I saw you first to let you know it’s expected that you go and greet the owner. And gush about what a good idea this was.’ Jaime gestured to the people below them. He nodded at a couple entering behind them, then took hold of Brienne’s waist and moved her further along the golden bannister they were standing by. They’d probably be standing at the door when someone they knew by association came and tried to talk to them. Jaime hated small talk, and he knew Brienne wasn’t a fan either. 

‘I don’t gush,’ Brienne said. She sighed. ‘And I don’t want to greet Tormund either.’ She fidgeted a little, tugging at her white suit jacket. Her suit was overlarge, obviously a fashion statement, and she did look good in it – but Jaime knew from his sister that most fashion forward pieces needed someone who believed in them to pull them off. Brienne was slightly hunched over and kept rolling the sleeves up. 

‘Tormund’s alright isn’t he?’ Jaime asked. He placed his half full glass on a dirty tray a waiter was hurrying past with. The smell of chlorine was getting to him, and making him light headed. He’d met with the head of Bear’s a couple of times before, and the guy had seemed...well, if not normal, then at least friendly enough. He made more dirty jokes than the average person was comfortable with and told larger than life stories that someone would need a bump on the head to believe, but he wasn’t a bad guy. 

Brienne’s face turned red. ‘He’s not bad,’ she said. ‘But he’s made a few sounds about...about asking me out, and I’d rather avoid that situation.’ 

‘Oh,’ Jaime said. It wasn’t like it had never occurred to him that Brienne had other men interested in her. She wasn’t pretty in the defined sense of the word, but she was smart and creative with a dry sense of humor and an air of mystery around her. ‘And you don’t feel the same way about him?’ he asked. 

‘I’d rather strip naked and jump in the pool from here,’ Brienne said. 

‘Now that’s something I’d like to see,’ Jaime muttered. Her blue eyes met his green ones for a split second, and this was it this was the moment...except then a booming laugh came from behind them from a door that led to the toilets on this level, and Tormund, and owner of Bear’s appeared. 

‘Well, if it isn’t my favourite person!’ the big guy roared, throwing an arm around Brienne. She was good, Jaime had to give her that – he barely even saw her flinch. 

‘I’ll leave you two alone,’ he murmured, regretfully. Brienne was sending him pleading eyes, but they both knew she had to suck it up and do her job, and that having Jaime by her side wouldn’t help matters. 

And anyway, he had another task to focus on. As he walked away, he pulled his phone from his pocket, pulling up the notes app, and re-reading the list of names he’d hastily typed up last week. Eight names stared back at him. Three he knew, another two by sight only, and he’d have to ask around for the last three. Someone in this room was bound to know who they were. 

And one of these eight names on the list had to be the model he was looking for. 

*

Asha had been a complete washout, which Jaime had thought she would be. She was the sister of Theon Greyjoy, Robb’s friend, but she’d somehow managed to talk her way into a job doing the running on shoots. She only worked on the weekends, but Jaime knew Catelyn was impressed with her. She wouldn’t be allowed to stay on if she hadn’t been. 

But she was useless to Jaime’s cause. Asha, like Dany was a little on the short side. 

She’d laughed. Loudly, when Jaime had made what he’d hoped were casual remarks about the photoshoot. She’d grinned at him, told him it was nothing to do with her, and then walked away. 

One name down. She had, however, pointed him in the direction of Osha, one of the caters from the day. Jaime hadn’t met her before, but he’d pulled up her business page so he had a brief idea who he was looking for. There had only been ten women at the photoshoot, including Catelyn and Brienne, and Jaime had invited them all tonight. 

Osha was about as helpful as Asha had been. She was a little busy when Jaime finally found her, on some guy’s shoulder, trying to push another woman off another guy’s shoulder into the pool. When Jaime had tried to talk to her, alluding that he felt like Osha might know the name of the mysterious model, she laughed, said ‘I know nothing about that, I was too busy in the van,’ and then growled as she ended up in the pool. 

Jaime could see her legs weren’t the ones on his desk, anyway. Two names down, just six more to go. Although one of the names on his list was a very unlikely option, Jaime had invited her because her name wouldn’t leave his head. He was praying it wouldn’t turn out to be her; he’d feel more like a pervert then he already did. 

He stood up from the side of the pool, wiping down the water splashes from the lapels of his jacket, and almost bumped into a tawny haired woman who was standing right behind him. 

‘Jaime Lannister, as I live and breathe!’ Margaery Tyrell took him by the shoulders, and kissed him twice on each cheek. He could feel the sticky imprint where her lip gloss had smeared across his skin. ‘It’s been so long! How are you? Win any other big awards recently? Grandmother says to send her love, she was very upset not to be invited today. I have to say I was quite surprised when I received my invite. I don’t suppose you’d know anything about that, would you?’ There was a knowing twinkle in her brown eyes, and not for the first time Jaime wondered where the Tyrell family got their information from. The Grandmother, Olenna, was the best PR woman in the business, and Margaery was her current assistant, learning everything from the master. Olenna was the one who’d put Bear’s in contact with the agency in the first place. 

Olenna could have been a contender for Legs, but Jaime had dismissed the idea straight away. Olenna was nearing 70 and still going, and while Jaime admired her spryness, there was no way those could be the legs of a 70 year old. 

Although if tonight continued going the way it was, Olenna’s name would be going on the next list he made. 

‘I assumed Tormund had invited everyone who worked on the shoot,’ Jaime replied mildly. He gestured to Osha behind him, who was now on some other guy’s shoulders. ‘I see you’re modelling the merchandise.’ Margaery was in the Legs swimsuit itself, the diamond square glittering prettily on her chest. 

But the legs protruding from the high cut legs, were not the ones splashed across posters and magazines across the nation. They were too tanned, and the proportions were all wrong. Plus, Margaery had knobbly knees. 

‘One of only twenty they have tonight,’ Margaery said, spinning around so Jaime could get the full effect. ‘I was lucky to get one. Women are getting into fights to wear them.’ 

‘Then you are lucky,’ Jaime said. Mentally he checked her name from his list. She wasn’t Legs...but that didn’t mean she couldn’t still be useful. ‘Although, I assume they’re saving one swimsuit for a special woman to model tonight. Since everyone from the shoot is here.’ He raised an eyebrow and Margaery gave a tinkling laugh. 

‘Well, I don’t see everyone from the shoot here,’ she said. ‘Daenerys couldn’t make tonight?’ 

‘She couldn’t make it,’ Jaime explained. Dany had explained that she was only taking on modelling jobs at the time being, shoots that could be easily crafted, and a baby bump well hidden. Otherwise she was choosing to stay out of the public eye. Jaime, once he’d realised she wasn’t Legs hadn’t tried that hard to make her come. 

‘Such a shame.’ Margaery lowered her voice. ‘Since Dany was the model booked on the shoot and all.’ 

‘While she might have been booked, I have had it confirmed that she’s not the one in the poster,’ Jaime said. 

‘And let me guess, you’re determined to find out who is?’ She laughed at the shock on his face. ‘Everyone knows you’ve got the photo on your desk, and it wasn’t too difficult to work out why a bunch of us were sent last minute invites.’ 

‘Do you know who it is?’ Jaime asked. Playing it cool seemed pointless. 

‘I do,’ she said, but Jaime already knew she wasn’t going to give him a name. Margaery liked to play games with people. She was always smiling like she knew something the other person didn’t, and like everything was just great fun. ‘But I don’t know why you’re searching for her. Rumour has it you have a crush on someone else entirely.’ 

They started to walk away from the edge of the pool, towards the closed off bar area. Jaime knew she wouldn’t come through with him, not with her in that outfit; she’d want to stay in the pool place so everyone could admire her. With her in the suit whispers would start to circulate. Some people hadn’t studied the photo as much as Jaime had. 

‘It’s complicated,’ he said. He wasn’t the best sharer of his feelings, and he had no intention of sharing them with Margaery. 

He also really needed to have words with Catelyn. He knew she went home and talked to her eldest daughter about her day at work, and that Sansa Stark was friends with Margaery despite the five-year age difference. Catelyn had never struck him as one for office gossip though, and that she would share something personal with her children wasn’t a fact Jaime was happy about. 

‘Alright,’ Margaery said as they reached the double doors. ‘I won’t try and pry it out of you. I’ll let you in on a secret though.’ Her eyes scanned the upper deck of the building, behind Jaime, who’s gaze stayed focused on her, before she leaned in, her head pressed against Jaime’s. ‘You can cross Melisandre off your list.’ She walked away then, her flip flops smacking against the tiles, and it wasn’t long before a cluster of guys had joined her and she was laughing and chatting again. 

Melisandre was the fashion editor for Bear’s. She was the one who’d chosen the black swimsuit as the one to be featured, from what Jaime had heard. She was tall, and willowy, with long red hair and she’d been Jaime’s biggest hope. She was the right height, and weight, and he’d never seen her legs before. He didn’t know much about her, just her face and her name, but she seemed like the kind of person who would step up in a crisis, who would put herself forward to save the day. 

But there she was, on the other side of the room, in a two piece red bikini. Her legs were thinner than the ones in the photo, he could spot that from here. 

Jaime brought up his list again, staring at four remaining names. One of them he hoped it wasn’t, and it was the longest shot. The other three, he knew nothing about. They could literally have passed him by thirty times over the past hour and a half. 

Well, fine. He would stay here all night if he had too. He just hoped everyone else would too. 

*

The truth was, he felt drawn to the legs. It made him feel guilty and horrible and like the type of guy he wasn’t, or that he tried so hard not to be, but he couldn’t help the way the photo made him feel. And his feelings about the photo, and trying to figure out who the mysterious model was, were a perfect distraction from his feelings about Brienne. The photo had been released at a time where he’d been missing her like crazy. It gave him something else to think about, rather than if he should make his move when she got back or if he should leave things as they were and not run the risk of her leaving his life altogether. 

Jaime stepped through the doors into the bar area, blinking a little in the dim light, so different from the bright lights of the pool. Low, cosy chairs were dotted around small tables, and the small bar took up one corner of the room. Silver, blue and white tiles split into crazy shapes reflected the room back from one wall, turning the customers into multi versions of themselves. 

It wasn’t hard to find Catelyn Stark, sitting at the bar as she was, nursing some kind of clear cocktail. Jaime made his way towards her, nodding at a few people he knew from around, but not stopping to talk. 

‘Jaime,’ Catelyn said when he reached her. ‘Won’t you take a seat?’ She gestured to the bar stool next to her, and he hopped up onto it, trying to make sure he didn’t show how uncomfortable the seat was. If Catelyn, who was at least fifteen years older than Jaime could sit here for as long as she had been, Jaime could damn well put up with it for ten minutes. ‘Didn’t fancy the pool?’ she asked. 

‘No,’ he said. ‘Much like yourself, I see.’ Catelyn was in one of her grey suits, although she’d paired it with a brightly coloured shirt to show she was in ‘party’ mode. 

‘I do wish Tormund would have given us a head’s up,’ she said, taking a sip from her glass. Jaime waved a bartender down, ordering a glass of wine he wasn’t intending to drink. 

‘It’s a genius idea,’ Jaime told her. ‘Forcing people to wear his swimsuits, so they can get a feel for the fit of them. From what I hear the orders have tripled tonight alone.’ He’d passed a few general chit chatters on his walks around the pool. 

‘It is a genius idea,’ Catelyn said. 

‘You should tell that to your face,’ Jaime said. If another client had come up with the idea, Jaime had a feeling Catelyn would be all over it, and lamenting on the fact she hadn’t come up with it herself. ‘What is it about this project that makes you so unhappy? You should be dancing on the bar, or rolling in the cash I’m sure Bear’s have paid the company.’ 

‘You should know me better than to think I’d ever dance on the bar,’ she said, avoiding the question. ‘Would you also care to explain to me why my 16-year-old daughter is outside? She told me she’d received a last-minute invite.’ She sighed. ‘I’ve left Robb in charge of her tonight, although that’s probably going to cause more trouble than it’s worth.’ 

Jaime took a small sip from his glass so he wouldn’t have to answer. Sansa Stark was the one person he was hoping it wasn’t. She was only sixteen, and he couldn’t imagine that anyone would think her modelling a swimsuit would be a good idea. 

But, it would explain the reluctance to release the model’s name to the media. Why Catelyn and Brienne looked so closed off when the campaign was brought up. And, she would have been easy to reach on the day of the shoot. All Catelyn would’ve had to do is pick up her phone and call her daughter. 

Catelyn sighed. ‘She’s not the model, Jaime.’ 

Jaime squirmed a little on his seat, and not just so he could try to find a more comfortable position. ‘I can see the files that everyone in the office checks out, and I saw you had been looking at the one for the photoshoot. And then all the women there get invited? You’re looking for her.’ The door opened again, and a couple entered the room, blinking as their eyes adjusted to the lights. Jaime took a second to scan the rest of the room, but he already knew Brienne wasn’t there. She was very easy to spot. 

‘Isn’t everyone?’ he said lightly. ‘Mysterious have always annoyed me.’ 

‘You’re looking in the wrong places,’ Catelyn said. ‘You’re thinking too much about it.’ She drained her drink, then stood up. ‘I suppose I should go and do the rounds. And see what my children are up to.’ 

‘One second,’ Jaime said. ‘I spoke to Margaery Tyrell earlier, and she...she seemed to know certain office gossip about me. I’d prefer if you didn’t take the work home to your children, so they can share it around.’ 

Catelyn gave him a look she hadn’t for at least a year now. It was a look that called Jaime a dumbass, and told him she regretted the day she’d hired him. 

‘Everyone knows about that office gossip,’ she said. ‘Margaery probably saw you and Brienne together once. That’s all most people need.’ Jaime’s cheeks heated up, and he fiddled with the stem on his glass. He didn’t want people just to come out and say it. ‘And I feel I should remind you that I am not the only Stark currently in the office. Maybe you should be having this conversation with my son.’ 

Jaime nodded, then let her go, watching as she left the room. He shouldn’t have suspected Catelyn. She wasn’t one for gossip, and she wouldn’t do anything that would make Brienne uncomfortable. 

Ygritte, Tormund’s daughter, Shae, the location manager, and Myranda, an assistant to Tormund. They were the remaining names on his list. 

But if Catelyn was to be believed, then he was thinking about it too hard. 

Could it be Catelyn? The idea had occurred to him before, but he’d dismissed it, same with Brienne. Neither of them would volunteer for a modelling shoot, or allow themselves to be talked into it. 

No. It had to be one of the last three on his list. 

He followed Catelyn out the door.


	6. Chapter 6

The next time he saw Brienne, the party was winding down. Only a few people remained in the pool, and they were just floating on their backs, or chatting in small groups. Most of the guests had moved to the bar, the doors now left wide open to cram more people inside. A few clusters hung around the pool and there was still the occasional squeal from those who refused to give up the fun of a free pool. 

Brienne was back on the landing where the front door was, leaning on the railing, and looking over the scene below. She’d ditched her suit jacket somewhere, her pale blue shirt matching the water. She looked a little unsteady on her feet, swaying where she stood, a half empty glass of wine clutched in her hand. 

‘Where did you get to?’ she asked Jaime as he approached. ‘You left me alone with Tormund.’ 

‘I didn’t want to intrude,’ Jaime said, taking a stance next to her, his elbows on the gold bar, his chin in his hands. ‘Plus, we both know you had a job to do.’ 

‘I’ve done my job, better than most I would say,’ Brienne said. She was squinting a little. 

Brienne wasn’t a big drinker, but Jaime knew she could be easily peer pressured into drinking more than she would normally choose to. And he guessed that Tormund was great at pressuring people to drink. 

‘I think most people would agree you’ve done a fantastic job,’ Jaime agreed. He gestured to the milling people below them. ‘Some would say this was all borne from your idea. It was a really great campaign, Brienne.’ He wasn’t sure he’d ever told her this seriously before, but he wanted her to know he meant it. He wanted to recapture whatever moment there had been between them earlier. 

‘Well, we all know you’re a fan of the poster,’ Brienne said, and she gave a small snort. ‘Did you find what you were looking for?’ 

The word ‘yes’ rose in his mouth; he knew what he was looking for, and she was standing right next to him. The photo had a powerful pull on him, it was true. And maybe if one of the girls he’d talked to tonight had been Legs...well. He might have tried to chat her up (unless it was Sansa, in which case he would have backed away hurriedly and spent the next four hours trying to scrub himself clean in the shower.) 

Only his heart wouldn't have been in it. There was only one person he wanted. 

‘I didn’t find the model, no,’ he admitted instead. He’d wandered around for the last half of the party, looking for the last three names on his lists. He had blurry social media photos to go on, so he looked for curly red hair, dark hooded eyes or a woman surrounded by men because she was known to be a bit of a flirt. 

He’d seen Ygritte from across the room, but after his talk with Catelyn he couldn't make himself approach her. 

‘Did you find something else?’ Brienne asked lightly. ‘You and Margaery Tyrell seemed pretty close earlier.’ That explained what Margaery had been looking at over Jaime’s shoulder when they were chatting. 

‘Ah, you know Margaery,’ he said. He wasn’t imagining the hint of...something in her voice, was he? 

His heartbeat increased, and he inched a little closer to Brienne. He’d been so focused on how he felt about her for the past few years, that he hadn’t ever really stopped to consider that there was even a chance she could feel the same about him. 

She was smart and creative, and Jaime knew that she could do much better than him. 

‘We’ve met,’ Brienne said. ‘She looked good in the swimsuit.’ 

‘I suppose,’ Jaime said. Margaery had looked good...but nobody looked as good as the woman in the poster. 

‘I just can’t believe she walked around in it all evening,’ Brienne said. ‘I could barely last an hour, the lines cut in so badly.’ 

‘When did you wear it?’ Jaime asked. He turned his body so he was looking at her full on. The water shimmered on her face making her look like a supernatural being. A thought began to slowly piece itself together in his mind. But...it was ridiculous. She wouldn’t. 

‘Earlier,’ Brienne said after a small beat. ‘Tormund insisted I wear one.’ 

‘You wouldn’t wear a swimsuit in front of hundreds of people you don’t know, just because someone asked you to,’ Jaime said slowly. ‘You’re far too strong willed for that.’ 

‘I used to think so too,’ Brienne said. Her cheeks were red, and her hand was gripped around the gold bar in front of them. 

‘When did you wear the swimsuit, Brienne?’ Jaime asked again. 

Brienne gave a long-suffering sigh, and didn’t move her gaze from the view below. 

‘When our model was deemed unsuitable on the day of the photoshoot and I stepped in,’ she said. 

There it was. Finally. Jaime had come to party hoping to find the model...and he had. 

‘I’m sorry,’ Jaime said. He was trying to keep his cool, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to hold on for much longer. Legs was Brienne. Brienne was Legs...her legs were currently displayed on thousands of adverts. Her legs were causing car crashes and accidents. Her legs were the only thing people could currently talk about. ‘Did you say...’ 

Brienne shrugged, but her cheeks as always gave her away. They were the reddest Jaime had ever seen them, even worse than the time she’d walked in on him changing in a meeting room, and had seen him with his top off. 

‘We had limited options. Margaery’s Grandmother refused to let her do it, said it would be demeaning to the family name. The other women kept to their jobs, and didn’t seem to want any part of it. I said we could reschedule but Ramsay had a fit. We couldn’t get everyone together for at least another three months and Tormund wasn’t happy with that plan.’ She shrugged again. ‘Catelyn suggested I do it. Ramsay laughed himself silly.’ 

‘I bet he stopped laughing when you came out in the swimsuit,’ Jaime answered. His throat felt a little dry, and he swallowed. The sound of the waters gentle sloshing below them seemed to fill his ears. 

‘He did,’ she said. ‘But he also told everyone that it didn’t matter about my legs, my face would ruin it.’ 

He shook his head, his hands curling into a fist. What he wouldn’t love to punch Ramsay. It was probably why Catelyn wouldn’t let them work on the same campaigns anymore, after they’d almost come to blows before on a job. 

But that wasn’t what he needed to focus on right now. 

‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ he asked. He’d thought...he didn’t know what he’d thought. He couldn’t say that some part of him had always known, because he hadn’t. Maybe it explained why he’d been drawn to the poster, but he’d never in a million years thought it would be Brienne. She just wasn’t that type of person. 

Except, obviously she was. 

‘I didn’t think there was much to tell,’ Brienne said. ‘I hated being in that swimsuit, and every second that I had to pose with my head thrown back, Ramsay looking through the camera at me.’ She shuddered at the memory. ‘But we had very little options, and my need to do a good job over rode everything else. The whole thing lasted an hour, and nobody actually cared about me being the model, except for me.’ She took a breath. ‘Everyone was happy with the finished photos, and we went about our daily lives. It was just supposed to be a little campaign, a few ad runs, nothing more. I didn’t even think many people would see it. Then I got the call about my dad, and I left. The family home is small, we hardly get any news from the outside. And I had more important things to do than check Twitter for the latest viral ad.’ She looked at Jaime then, her blue eyes the same shade as the water down below them. There was shame and awkwardness in her gaze, but also defiance. 

She was the type of person who would do anything to make sure she did a good job. Jaime knew that about her. And she was helpful, always pitching in if she could. He should have put two and two together. 

Maybe he hadn’t wanted to see it. ‘I had weekly phone calls with Catelyn, and you were texting me news every day. It didn’t even occur to me that both of you were hiding how successful it had become.’ 

‘I...,’ Jaime said, but there was no good end to that sentence. He hadn’t told her, because of the way he felt about her, and his conflicting, lustful emotions for a pair of legs in a photo. He didn’t want her to see him as that kind of guy. 

‘You don’t need to explain,’ she said gently. ‘I’m glad you didn’t. I would have had a meltdown out there, and I needed that time with my father.’ The last few people were getting out of the pool now, their skin glistening under the lights. 

Jaime’s hand was next to Brienne’s on the railing. Slowly, so that she would notice, so that she could pull away if she wanted to, he placed his hand over hers, covering her pale hand with his tanned one. 

‘Thank you for telling me,’ he said. He wasn’t sure what this meant for them. How could he tell her how he felt now? She might think he was only doing it because of his feelings for the photo. He didn’t want that. ‘I hope you don’t regret it in the morning,’ he said to diffuse some of the tension he could feel building. Cleaners were emerging from hidden doors on the bottom floor, black bags in their hands, and Jaime knew they’d be asked to leave soon. The party was well and truly over. 

‘I think I’ll be fine,’ Brienne said. After a moment, she flipped their hands, then squeezed them so tight and so briefly that Jaime wondered if he’d imagined it as he watched her leave.


	7. Chapter 7

Monday morning found Jaime in Catelyn’s office, waiting for his boss. They had a 9.00am meeting to discuss his latest ideas. He should have been well rested, having all of Sunday off, but the previous two nights had contained very little sleep. Jaime’s mind was constantly turning all of the information from the party over and over. Brienne was Legs. She hadn’t told him, even though she knew as soon as got back about his obsession with the photo. Was that because once she learned about his obsession, she didn’t want him knowing it was her, in case he asked her out? Was he really such a bad prospect? She hadn’t been in contact at all yesterday, and Jaime had found it very hard not to text her either. She’d said that she wouldn’t regret telling him, but she’d been drunk, and it had been late. She was at a client meeting this morning, so he hadn’t seen her yet either, and he wasn’t sure how to act when he did. He couldn’t say anything, obviously. She may have told him the big secret, but it was still a secret hidden from the rest of the world. 

‘Good morning, Jaime,’ Catelyn said as she swept into her office, taking her seat and giving him what passed for a smile. ‘I hope you enjoyed yourself at the party on Saturday?’ 

Jaime wasn’t sure there was an answer to that. ‘It was informative,’ he said instead. 

‘Did you find what you were looking for?’ she asked. 

Catelyn was there. Of course she knew it was Brienne. But she hadn’t said anything either. He guessed it explained Catelyn’s reluctance to gush about the job and how well it was doing. If anyone knew how Brienne would feel about all the attention it was Catelyn. They’d always verged more on the side of friends than just boss and employee. 

‘Good,’ Catelyn said, before Jaime could respond. It seemed his face said it all. ‘I’m glad she told you.’ 

Jaime huffed a laugh. ‘Only because she’d been drinking. It was an accident. She let it slip.’ 

‘Does Brienne strike you as the type of person to let something like that just slip out?’ Catelyn asked. She was looking at the storyboards he’d placed on her desk for her to oversee. 

‘I suppose not,’ he said after a moment’s pause. ‘But she’d been drinking.’ 

‘Does Tormund seem like the type of person who’d risk letting people drink around deep water?’ she asked. ‘Most of the drinks were low, if not, alcohol free.’ 

Jaime stared at her. That couldn’t be right. He had wondered about mixing drink with the pool, but in all honestly, he would have said that Tormund did seem like that type of person. He was all about the risk, not the consequences. 

But he was also a smart businessman, and probably wouldn’t risk his company. So he’d let the drinks be served in champagne glasses, and relied on people to just go with it, getting into the spirit of the evening, without their reflexes and choices being influenced. 

‘Brienne wasn’t drunk,’ he said. ‘Why did she pretend to be?’ The more he learned the less sense anything made. 

‘Because she knew it was finally time to tell you what was going on,’ Catelyn said. She’d put down his ideas and was giving him her full attention, which was only slightly nerve wracking. Jaime always felt like he was being measured and never quite reached what was expected of him when Catelyn gazed at him like this. ‘I’ve tried to make her tell you since she’s been back, but she insisted on leaving you in the dark. She’s the only reason Bear’s aren’t releasing her name to the public. Once she’d agreed to be the model, she made them sign a contact stating that her name would never be released. Tormund’s been trying to not so subtly get out of it, but you know Brienne.’ He’d thought he did. 

‘Why wouldn’t she tell me?’ Jaime asked. He knew he sounded pathetic. He didn’t care. He’d thought they were friends. That she trusted him. But she’d kept this from him, and he couldn’t think of one happy reason why she would do something like that. 

‘You and Brienne are probably the best two employees I’ve got,’ Catelyn said. ‘But you’re also the two most stubborn, blind, idiotic people in the company as well.’ 

‘I’d rather you just stopped at the compliment,’ Jaime said, slouching in his chair. He was going to need a stiff drink after this. Although, that would come later. He wasn’t quite depressed enough to open a bottle before 5pm. 

‘She didn’t want to tell you because she was afraid you’d be disappointed when you found out it was her,’ Catelyn said like she was explaining something easy to a difficult child. ‘Apart from the people on the shoot, who she couldn’t stop from knowing, she never wanted it to be mentioned again. When it became bigger than anyone thought it would be, I hid the truth from her because I knew it would stress her out and that she didn’t need it. When she came back, she was understandably angry, but she also realised the whole thing had gotten out of control and there was nothing she could do to get it back. I believe she was intending to tell you...and then she saw the photo on your desk. She heard people talking about your reaction and she was worried about what your reaction might be if you found out it was her.’ 

‘What did she think my reaction would be?’ Jaime asked, completely at a loss. 

He was sure Catelyn mouthed the word ‘idiot’ to herself before she continued. ‘I can’t speak for her, and I know she would hate me for telling you any of this, but I have to think of my staff and my company and I can’t let this continue any longer. She likes you, Jaime. But she’s also ridden with doubt and self esteem issues, and she was scared that when you learned the photo was of her, you would be disgusted by the way it had made you feel.’ 

‘She really thinks I respect her that little?’ he asked. The whiskey bottle was calling his name again. Maybe he’d only wait till 4pm to crack one open. 

‘She really thinks you aren’t sexually attracted to her,’ Catelyn said bluntly. ‘She knows that once you found out the truth, you’d take the photo down, and she feared things would be awkward between the two of you. She didn’t want to lose you.’ 

‘Why are you telling me all this?’ Jaime asked. It was the easiest thing to focus on...rather than what Catelyn had also said, which had sounded an awful lot like ‘Brienne likes you.’ 

‘Your quest to find out this model involved my teenage daughter, and that is something I can not allow to happen again,’ Catelyn said. ‘I hate betraying Brienne’s trust, but there’s not much I’ve said that I figure you don’t already know or couldn’t have worked out for yourself.’ 

‘I...,’ Jaime said, but she held up a hand to silence him. 

‘That is all I have to say on this matter,’ she said. She gestured to the boards below her. ‘Shall we get to work?’ 

Her tone told him she was not to be argued with. 

‘Of course,’ he said, leaning forward so he could show her his ideas for Golden Hand Ashtrays. 

It was lucky Jaime could talk about his work in his sleep; most of his thoughts were on far more important things.


	8. Chapter 8

Two days after Jaime's chat with Catelyn, in which neither she nor he brought it up again, Brienne and Jaime happened to be the only people left in the office at lunch. The interns were enjoying a pizza party social on the bottom floor, held for all the new workers in the building (which hadn't been Jaime's idea, he'd just happened to mention to the building manager that there were a lot of new young faces around and wouldn't it be nice for them all to get to know each other. And Jaime had offered to pay for the pizza.) Six other members of the team were off on various shoots and location scouting which was probably why Jaime had chosen this particular lunch time to do this, thanking his lucky stars when he'd seen that Brienne had nothing booked in for the day (and, yes, he'd paid Robb Stark to help him break into Brienne's work diary online but really what was the issue? Robb hadn’t known it had been Brienne's schedule, because Jaime had told Robb it was his own and that he'd just locked himself out of it.) Adam had invited Pia to a fancy new restaurant at Jaime's suggestion. (Jaime privately thought of the saying two birds, one stone, when he saw Pia's face light up when Adam asked her.) 

And Catelyn, upon seeing that Jaime and Brienne were the only two left in their office, had quietly shut her computer down and announced she was going out for lunch, just like Jaime had hoped she would. She'd been gone five minutes now, and Jaime knew this was his chance. It was unlikely that someone would walk through the doors in the next fifty minutes or so, but there were delivery men to contend with, or the possibility of someone's shoot getting cancelled and them coming back early. 

It was now or never. 

As he stood, Jaime clutched the small hard lump in his jacket pocket, making sure it was still there, even though he knew it couldn't possibly have gone anywhere else. 

Brienne was sitting at her desk, where she'd been all morning, shoulders hunched as she stared at the screen in front of her. There was a partition wall between Jaime's and hers desk, but he knew she'd be able to see him approach from the corner of her eye once he rounded the wall. 

They hadn't talked since the party, and the photo was still on Jaime's desk. Adam had casually asked him the next day if he had succeeded on his quest to find Legs but Jaime had just shaken his head and said that some things were probably best left secret. 

'What do you want?' Brienne asked. 'I'm very busy.' 

'Busy enough not to have lunch?' Jaime asked, taking her starting the conversation as an invitation. He pulled up a spare chair next to her desk, ignoring the glare she sent his way. He was Jaime Lannister. It took more than a glare and tone of voice to get rid of him. 

Brienne should know that by now. 

She pointed at a half unwrapped sandwich and bag of crisps on her desk. 'Everyone's entitled to a break,' Jaime said. 

'I've just had a four-month break,' she said. 'I have a lot to do.' He knew she was waiting for him to get up and go, but instead he reached into his pocket and drew a very hastily wrapped gift from inside. It was tiny, small enough to nestle in the palm of a hand, but he placed it on her desk. 

'I got you a present,' he said. 'It's not much, but I wanted to say congratulations. On the swimsuit campaign. It really is something.' He'd scoured the internet for hours the night before (thank god for Amazon one day delivery), looking for something to present her with, but everything had either been too impersonal or too much. Brienne wasn't going to accept a lavish gift from him, even as a well-done gift. Even the bottles of champagne grateful clients sent were stored under her desk until the company had something to celebrate and then she shared it around with everyone. But a box of chocolate wasn’t going to cut it either. 

‘What is it?’ Brienne asked, apprehensive on her face. She darted a hand out to quickly nudge the parcel before pulling away sharpish. 

‘It’s not going to bite,’ Jaime said, amused despite himself. This was supposed to be a serious conversation. 

‘The last time I had a present from you, it was one of those exploding glitter bombs,’ Brienne said, and Jaime remembered a drunken prank. He hadn’t even seen her open the envelope, but Brienne’s explanation of shock had been the loudest he’d ever heard her, and seeing her covered in pink and silver glitter was something to behold. 

He’d been in a lot of trouble for that one. Brienne had refused to speak to him for a month, and even though Catelyn pretended she understood it was ‘just some work place banter’ Jaime hadn’t been awarded any good campaigns for three months afterwards. ‘I still sometimes find bits of glitter now,’ Brienne said. 

‘This is a nice gift,’ Jaime said. ‘I’ve grown.’ Brienne gave him a skeptical look, but she reached for the parcel once again, and started to unwrap it, eventually pulling a small china bear out into the open. ‘It’s to remind you of the campaign. I know you hate seeing the poster, so I thought you could leave this on your desk instead. It really is remarkable.’ 

Brienne was turning the bear over in her hands, a small smile at the edge of her lips. ‘In spite of the edited background,’ Jaime added. 

Brienne let out a long groan, and Jaime felt a little hard knot in his stomach loosen. Whatever this conversation led to, even if it wasn’t what he hoped...he’d have her in his life. Even if he had to weasel his way back in with comments and jokes. 

‘I didn’t have a choice,’ she said. ‘The weather was terrible. I was covered in goosebumps, and the sea was grey. Not the good grey either.’ She clicked around on her computer, and Jaime was surprised to see the clip files of the original photos spread across her screen. 

There it was. In all its glory; Brienne’s head above the famous Legs pose. She was holding her arms around herself in one, a scowl on her face. She’d been caught rolling her eyes in another, Jaime figured while Ramsey had tried to set the lights to his liking. She didn’t look any happier in the ones where she was actually posing, her head tipped back, the line that would eventually be cut. ‘And the sand was horrible,’ Brienne said. Jaime quickly switched his attention to the background. A British seaside stared back at him; a little grotty, but good enough for kids to play around on. ‘The original plan was to fly Dany to a white sand, green sea beach, but Bear’s pulled the plans the week before. This was the best we could do, but even I knew it wasn’t going to fly.’ She was fiddling around with the photos, enlarging bits and pieces here, and Jaime knew she was finding fault in every single one. Brienne wouldn’t have had the final say on the photo used of course, and though she’d never admit it out loud, Jaime knew she always felt like she could have produced something just slightly better than what was eventually used. Even if it was just from something as simple as moving an object slightly to the right, or using a different location. 

Jaime did it too. 

‘I think it’s safe to say it all worked out for the best,’ Jaime said. He wondered how much the media would pay for the photos staring out at him right now. He was one of only a handful of people who would ever get to see these. He was sure of that. 

‘For some,’ Brienne replied. The files closed, and she sat staring at a blank screen. ‘Not for others.’ 

‘I disagree,’ Jaime said mildly. ‘I think it worked out well for everyone.’ For a second, he hovered on the edge. He could stand up, turn away, and let Brienne go back to her desk lunch. Go back to normal. 

Except he didn’t want that anymore. ‘Personally, I think getting to see what you keep hidden under your trousers worked out for everyone.’ He knew he could have been a little smoother, but he had an awful habit of not engaging his brain before he said important things. It was why he usually liked his job so much. Everything was so planned out and thought through beforehand, he didn’t usually have much opportunity to make an idiot of himself. 

He could feel Brienne’s gaze on his face, and he turned to look at her. If his mouth was going to be disengaged, he’d just have to hope that she could read what he meant in his eyes. 

‘Everyone knows how you feel about what’s under my trousers,’ Brienne said. ‘There’s a photo on your desk to prove it.’ 

‘I’ll take it down, if you want me to,’ he offered. It felt like the polite thing to do, even though Jaime already felt a pang at the thought. He’d liked having that picture on his desk. It had reminded him of Brienne even before he knew it was actually of her. Of her creative mind, of her simple brilliance. 

Brienne shrugged. ‘If it makes you happy, I don’t have a problem with it.’ 

‘You make me happy,’ he said. ‘I mean it. You do.’ 

He could almost see the gears turning in Brienne’s head as she debated what to say next. A brief panic flared up within him – what if he was mistaken and she just liked him as a friend? What if he hadn’t been enough to override the pranks and the name calling and the teasing from the first few months here? - but he remembered what Catelyn had told him, and he forced the voices in his head to shush. Catelyn wasn’t someone who would stir something like this up without being sure of her facts. 

‘You...make...me happy too,’ she said slowly, a pause before each new word. ‘I wanted to tell you about being the model, but we didn’t really have a chance to talk before I went to my fathers. And when I came back it had blown up so big, and Pod had told me about the photo. I didn’t want...’ she chewed her bottom lip for a second. ‘I didn’t want to ruin the photo for you.’ 

‘That never would have happened,’ Jaime said. ‘I don’t think there’s anything you could ruin.’ 

A ghost of a smile flit across her face. ‘You don’t know me very well then. I’m excellent at ruining good things.’ 

‘We have that in common,’ he replied. 

‘Catelyn told me what she said to you,’ Brienne ventured. 

‘And?’ Jaime asked. 

‘And... I guess I was working up the nerve to talk to you,’ she said. ‘A time when nobody else was around.’ She gestured around the empty office. ‘I guess now worked out pretty perfectly.’ 

‘Lucky us,’ Jaime said. He’d tell her one day. Probably. ‘So, what did you want to talk to me about?’ 

Brienne swallowed, and picked up the bear Jaime had brought her, turning it over and over in her hands. 

‘I’m not very good at talking about my feelings,’ she said. ‘But from what I gather...what Catelyn told you is true.’ 

‘All of it?’ Jaime asked. 

‘I understand if this makes our friendship uncomfortable for you, and I understand...’ 

‘Brienne,’ Jaime said, moving his chair forward till his legs was pressing against hers. ‘Shut up.’ 

‘Look, I only wanted to talk to you because Catelyn made some suggestion that maybe you feel the same way, and I was skeptical, and I get this is not what you wanted...’ 

‘Shut up and kiss me,’ Jaime said. His face was so close to hers now he could see the freckles that scattered across her face and make them into shapes; he could see the darker flecks of blue in her otherwise sapphire eyes; he could see the doubt and confusion flicking in her gaze. 

Well. There was only one way he was going to answer her concerns. 

He half rose from his chair, bringing their faces even closer together, but before he could make the final move, her lips were pressed to his. 

It wasn’t the best first kiss ever. Both of them admitted that. Jaime’s stomach was shoved into the corner of the desk, causing a mark that wouldn’t fade for two days. Brienne’s sandwich had contained mustard and there was a slight tang in the misting of their breath as the kiss deepened. Jaime removed his hand from where he’d been leaning on the desk, and accidentally lurched forward a little, almost toppling on top of Brienne and breaking the kiss. 

‘Shit,’ he said. ‘Sorry.’ 

‘No problem,’ Brienne said. Jaime stood up, rubbing at the sore spot on his stomach. Her usually pale cheeks were flushed, and Jaime was kicking himself mentally. There was no sugar coating that kiss. 

‘That was terrible,’ Brienne said, and Jaime’s heart sunk. She was going to think the bad kiss was a sign. That they shouldn’t be together. 

Except, to his surprise, she then burst into laughter. 

‘It wasn’t the best kiss in the world,’ Jaime said, a smile on his face the more he watched her. He knew that their relationship was so fragile, that it had barely even started; they there would be so much to overcome and work out before he could tell her the words running through his head. ‘To be honest,’ he said, taking her hand and drawing her to her feet. ‘I think we can do much better.’ 

‘Yeah?’ she asked. Her arms crept around his shoulder, and Jaime found himself looking up at her; and finding that he liked it. 

‘Oh yes,’ he murmured, already drawing her face to his once again


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this little world x

At first nobody in the office noticed anything different. When they arrived back at the office, scattered throughout the afternoon, both Jaime and Brienne were at their desks, each working on their assigned jobs. Adam had a meeting with Jaime, to discuss a pitch they were working on together (Whispering Wooden Beds), although most of the time was spent talking about Adam’s lunch with Pia. Brienne was called to Catelyn’s office, but the chat lasted two minutes and no details were exchanged. 

Even two weeks later, things were normal. Jaime and Brienne still bickered in the morning meetings, and nobody noticed Catelyn watching them with a knowing look in her eye, and a hidden smile. 

Only Pia heard Pod approach Jaime one morning and mutter something about ‘treat her...I can’t do much...but I will hurt you.’ She pondered on it for a while, but then a boquet of flowers arrived for her from Adam and the conversation was put from her mind. 

The photo stayed on Jaime’s desk, even after all the media attention died down, and everyone moved onto which footballer had taken an injunction out to stop them from publishing about his affair. A small china bear had appeared on Brienne’s desk, but nobody really noticed. 

Three months after their terrible first kiss, (and their better second one, and their not-in-the-workplace third one, and their fantastic fourth one and so on), Dany Drogo arrived back at the office to see the photos for the Queen Dragon Perfume. Her baby bump was fit to bursting now, and for the first time since Jaime had met her, she wasn’t carrying one of her dogs with her. 

‘Good to see you,’ Jaime said, greeting Dany as she came through the door. He was once again under the noticeboard, pretending to study the leaflets up there, but really staring at Brienne in the reflection of the water cooler. ‘I see everything is going well.’ He nodded to the bump. 

‘He’s a little kicker, that’s for sure,’ Dany said, placing a hand on her stomach. ‘He’s going to be a sports star, just like his Daddy.’ 

Jaime didn’t know if he’d describe her husband as a star, but he held his words. He was getting better at that now days. Sometimes, he’d be on the verge of saying something, before he’d catch Brienne’s eye. She never told him not to say anything, but there was always a small smirk on her face, that let him know he was about to talk himself into trouble. It really had helped improve his life – he hadn’t even fought with his father in two months. 

‘I’m not sure I ever offered my congratulations,’ Jaime said, as he fell into step beside her, and they walked slowly to Catelyn’s office. They passed Pia’s now empty desk, and Dany raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. It was well known that Dany worked closely with Catelyn’s company, so it was no surprise that the stories had already spread to her. (A bad and very public break up with Adam, in the middle of a pitch, before being headhunted by another company. That had been an awkward leaving party, Jaime constantly dodging a drunken Pia who seemed determined to track him down, since it was her last chance. He’d gone home to find Brienne asleep on his sofa, having excused herself from the party early because she had a big pitch in the morning. He’d started looking at rings the next day, but had told no one except his brother. He’d leave it a little longer before actually popping the question of course, but it was always an idea to shop around a little.) 

‘Thank you,’ Dany said. It was quiet in the office today, most of the interns having left to go back to collage or moving on to paid jobs. Only one remained, a boy whose name Jaime had never bothered to learn. He’d been quite glad to see the rest of them go. He always felt like Pod was watching him, since he’d figured out about Jaime and Brienne. Jaime wasn’t scared by Pod’s threats, but still. It had been a little unsettling. ‘I never did ask,’ she said. ‘Did you find out who that model was? The one in the swimsuit? I asked around after that conversation with you, but it seemed like there was a hastily drawn up contact and everybody on the set was forced to sign it, saying they’d never reveal who it was.’ 

‘I didn’t,’ Jaime said, the lie falling smoothly from his lips. He’d been telling it for months after all. Everyone in his life had known he’d been obsessed with the model, and had asked him constantly for weeks if he’d found out who it was. Jaime had finally had to pretend that his obsession had broken, although if anything it had actually gotten worse. (But, really who could blame him? He got to worship those legs every night and having the real thing in front of him...that was something no man would be able to get over.) ‘I found something much better.’ 

‘Really?’ Dany asked, and her gaze skimmed the top of Brienne’s head. ‘Did you and Brienne finally get together? I’ve been rooting for the two of you since I saw you have a conversation together a year ago.’ 

‘What’s this?’ Adam asked, coming up behind Jaime and making him jump. ‘You and Brienne aren’t together, are you?’ Brienne’s head had popped up at the mention of her name, and her gaze met Jaime’s. They hadn’t hidden their relationship on purpose, but both of them admitted it was easier to deal with at the office without anyone knowing. ‘Are you?’ 

Brienne gave a sigh, then one short sharp nod of her head, before disappearing back behind her desk wall. 

‘We are, actually,’ Jaime said. ‘We’ve been together for a little while now.’ Adam gave a long wolf whistle, then clapped Jaime on the back. ‘Good for you man.’ Jaime who had expected more, watched him go. The whole office would know by lunchtime. 

‘Anyway, I should get in to see Catelyn,’ Dany said. ‘This little guy tires me out so easily nowadays. It was good to see you Jaime. I’m glad you got what you wanted, even if it was different to what you thought it was.’ She patted him on the arm, then entered Catelyn’s office. Jaime watched her go, thinking about her bump. Her bump that had caused her not to be allowed on the photoshoot. If it wasn’t for that child would he and Brienne have managed to find their way to each other? 

He wasn’t sure, and he made a mental note to send that baby the biggest gift he could find when he finally arrived into the world. 

He turned to head to the meeting room, to set up for his next pitch, but as he did so, his gaze caught on the photo still standing on his desk. He might have to take it down now people knew about him and Brienne, although he didn’t think anyone here would care. The photo had just become part of the mess of items on Jaime’s desk. People rarely even noticed it now, an odd client now and then mentioning it if it caught their eye. Even Jaime himself rarely looked at it nowadays. 

He didn’t need Legs anymore. 

Not when he could have the person they belonged to.


End file.
